NINJAGO: Taken!
by MagicWords22
Summary: Jay is snatched away from the ninja and turned into a horrible weapon. Will they be able to save him before the damage is done? Rated T for violence and adult themes (nothing too racy don't worry). The third installment in my ninjago fan fiction series.
1. Chapter 1

Yellow. Dessie likes the color yellow.

Kai made a mental note of this as he painted the previously white wall. The sunny colored paint went on nicely, and he almost didn't need a second coat.

"Pass me those plastic tarps, would'ya?" asked Cole from across the room. Jay lifted the clear plastic and dragged it over to Cole, who was waiting impatiently.

"Hurry up!" said Cole. "My wall is sweating yellow paint and I don't want it on the floor!"

"I thought Dessie was in charge of this," huffed Jay, a sassy glance aimed at Cole,"and not this bossy loud guy." Cole stuck out his tongue and continued painting with the tarp safely tucked beneath his paint brush.

"Only she could go pick out the shelves," argued Kai proudly. He liked it that his girlfriend was so needed by his friends. "Only the official, _graduated_ healer should decide on the _SHELVES!"_

"This whole 'Healing Cabin on the Bounty' thing is an awesome idea," said Cole, taking a swipe at the blue ninja's back with his brush. "And that's why I am making sure it gets done right!"

"Cole!" snapped Jay, realizing his back had a large, wet, yellow stain on it. "I liked this shirt!"

"Then why did you wear it to paint in?" asked Zane from where he sat, playing the radio. "Everyone knows you wear clothes you _don't_ like when you are - "

"- _trying_ to show off to Nya," interrupted Kai, who couldn't miss the opportunity to make a jibe at Jay.

"Okay, very funny," said Jay, scrunching his freckled nose at Kai. "You think you are _so_ above me because you've already proposed and came back from the dead to do it! Well some relationships need more time."

"Don't let it get stale," said Cole. "Wait too long and Nya will start getting bored."

"When _are_ you going to get serious about Nya anyway?" asked Kai, suddenly taking interest. "I mean, you've been together since we were sixteen. It's been like four years already! Most relationships outside of being married don't last much longer than that. Besides, I would advise nearly dying from falling out of a haunted hospital before proposing."

Jay opened his mouth to defend himself when suddenly there was a loud crash and a gale of laughter that sounded like Dessie and Nya. "What was **_that_**?!" demanded Cole, always a little overprotective of Dessie.

"We're okay," came Dessie's giggle down the hall. The four young men rushed out of the room and came upon the sight of Nya and Dessie trapped under a pile of groceries, shelves, and other parcels.

"You could have texted and said you needed help," Kai chided his love, lifting the heavy shelves off of her. She bubbled with laughter and said, "But your phone is always dead!"

"But his phone - " wheezed Nya pointing at Kai, and they plunged into a fit of silly giggles all over again, Dessie slapping the floor in mirth, and Nya wiping tears of laughter from her scrunched eyes.

"Okay, what happened to you two?" asked Cole, helping Dessie to her feet as the other things were lifted and carried away to their proper places in the kitchen. Dessie hiccuped as she always did when she laughed too much, and Nya had to answer. "We just couldn't help it," she said. "We were talking about something Ms. Take did when Dessie took the test, and Dessie made this face - " and Nya was lost in peals of laughter again.

"They worked themselves up," said Kai, picking Dessie up in his arms. She squeaked, then gave him a peck on the cheek. "Let's take a break anyway. These girls need to _breathe,"_ he added with such an exaggerated face that the two gigglers lost it again and had to be made to rest on the couch for a moment in order to stop the ridiculous laughing.

Riing!

"Haha!" Dessie laughed, her unique gray-green eyes dancing. She always laughed when a phone rang.

"Uh, Jay," said Kai, "I think that's you."

"Who makes calls these days?" Demanded Jay, pulling out his phone. "I didn't even recognize my ringtone cause _I never use it!_ "

"Our boss makes phone calls," stated Zane, and everyone giggled at Jay's serious face as he answered the call from Cyrus Borg.

Jay answered quickly. "Jay here."

Dessie giggled and elbowed Kai. "Jay here," she mimicked in a nasal voice. Kai giggled and elbowed back. "More like 'nerd here'."

They all waited as Jay said things like "wow" and "Yeah" over and over again. After a few minutes, Jay said "I'll tell 'em! Thanks Borg - see you in a bit."

He turned to Zane. "Gotta go bro - we are needed at the plant."

Zane sighed. "I suppose."

"Dude, we get to go to work with Borg again - aren't you just a little excited?"

"I don't have the same idolization for him as you do."

"Well, I'm pretty sure I heard P.I.X.A.L. in the backround…" Jay let the thought trail off.

Zane was at the door, ready to go. Everyone smiled - Zane was smitten with the young robot belonging to Cyrus Borg.

"Do you have to go?" asked Nya softly. The sad note in her voice seized Jay, and he whirled around and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be back very very soon," he said. "I promise."

"Aw," whined Dessie. "But I needed Zane to help me organize."

"And to play the music!" Cole. "We still don't have internet."

"WE ARE GOING TO WORK," shouted Jay, and shut the door behind them.

Ninjago city was growing again. This time, bigger and better. But bigger meant that more power was needed for the city and the people inside. Cyrus Borg, inventor and overall mechanical genius, was working with Jay and Zane to power and configure a new power plant. Borg was disabled physically, but what he lacked in leg strength he had in brains. Right now he was working on the generators, and Jay was in heaven, working with his childhood idol. Zane wasn't doing badly either - Borg had his very own daughter named P.I.X.A.L., and Zane had very strong robotic feelings for her.

Another associate of Borg's was Mike Soro. He was a man that had worked with Cyrus for years, and was working here with him too. He was a short, fat man who Zane and Jay disliked very much. Jay thought often about why - mostly because he wasn't sure. His attitude? It was sour, but no more. His face? It was fat, but that wasn't something to be held against him. Maybe it was just his aura? Jay always felt weird and clammy when he was around. Maybe it was the way he talked to Zane. Jay was sure it was that one - Soro asked the most complicated and personal questions of Zane. When they were in the middle of working, no less! It drove everyone nuts.

Even today, as they worked the generators, the questions just kept coming. Jay did his best to focus on giving power to the generators and ignore the whiny voice of Mike Soro as he asked for the umpteenth time -

"Zane, what kind of power source do you have? I have been studying potential elements it could be made of, and - "

"Mr. Soro," came a clear, soft voice. Jay thanked the heavens - it was P.I.X.A.L., stepping in to save her Zane.

"I am sorry to interrupt," She said, her large, robotic green eyes glowing slightly, showing her alertness. "But Zane is working very hard to steady the temperature of this generator and keep it from overheating. Please save your questions for another time."

"But since his inventor died, I wondered if I might have a look at his blueprints," he said. "I would love to just have a little look, not long - "

P.I.X.A.L.'s eyes turned red, and a high pitched whine came from somewhere inside of her as something activated. Her eyes grew brighter, and Soro quickly excused himself - last week she had zapped him with her eyes because of too many questions, and she was obviously prepared to zap him again.

"Point for P.I.X.A.L.," Jay observed. "Um, how are you doing, Zane?"

"These generators are stable," came his voice.

"No I meant…well…Soro was kind of a jerk about your dad, so I…I thought maybe you might be a little upset."

"I was merely annoyed," said Zane. "I have accepted the fact that he will never understand what my father really meant to me, as he cannot accept that in reality I am as human as he is."

"Maybe even a little more," muttered Borg darkly under his breath.

"Whoa," said Jay, his drama senses tingling. "I thought he was your partner. Like, aren't you guys besties?"

"Perhaps not 'besties'," said Borg. He was laying down underneath a generator, adjusting some wires.

"Master Borg and Mr. Soro rarely see eye to eye," said P.I.X.A.L. softly. "He is a man who lacks respect for anyone or anything. Nothing is sacred or personal to him, and he will never accept our artificial intelligence." She looked at Zane and smiled.

"Why don't you two get married?" asked Jay with a laugh, half to himself. "You two are perfect for each other."

"I suppose we could," said Zane thoughtfully. "Marriage had never occurred to me."

"It…it did to me," said P.I.X.A.L. softly. "However, I wasn't sure you would want it."

"Wait," said Jay, peeking around the corner of a generator. "What? You guys are talking about marriage now?"

"I have always liked the day of August 4th," said P.I.X.A.L.

"And your father can perform the ceremony," said Zane.

"Wait!" cried Jay, running over to intervene. "Zane Zane Zane - you have to _ask_."

"Ask for what?"

"For her hand in marriage! You also need to ask her dad if it's ok."

Borg gave a thumbs up from underneath the generator.

P.I.X.A.L. looked up at Zane, large eyes giving off a soft green light. Her white hair and artificial skin were smooth, and her mouth parted gently in a smile. Zane smiled back. "Would you?" He asked.

"With all my generator," she said with a wink.

"Zane!" cried Jay, jubilant. "You are getting married! Whoa," he suddenly said, his words sinking in. "You are getting married! We have to tell everyone! We have to plan the bridal shower and - "

"And that's that," said Borg, and Pixal helped him back into his wheelchair. "My little robot is getting married."

He smiled and said, "You boys are free to go home now; the generators are stable and you can take the day off tomorrow."

"Nya will love that," said Jay with a grin. "Thanks Mr. Borg!"

Jay and Zane walked out of the building laughing and excitedly talking. A wedding! What next?

"Zane, get some pizza to celebrate," said Jay suddenly with a grin. "I'll grab some ice cream on the way home from Todashki's."

They parted ways. Zane walked a little ways, then turned back. Jay was walking towards the street with Todashki's Ice Cream Parlor. His red hair shining bright in the setting sun, shoulders squared and confident. For a moment, Zane felt a chill come over him. As if something was going to happen. But it wasn't strong, and as Jay continued walking it faded away. Zane shrugged to himself and turned to focus on buying the pizza. Maybe it was nothing.

()

"Hey! Walker, wait up!"

Jay halted. Mike Soro, round face red and puffing from running, stopped and nearly fell to his knees from lack of exercise. "Jay, come quickly!" he panted. "The machine - it's gonna blow if we don't do something fast!"

Jay's face turned white. He started running back towards the building. "Tell me what's wrong!" he shouted as Mike tried to follow him.

"We have to get to station three," said Mike. "The main generator is malfunctioning internally."

"But that generator is brand new," said Jay.

"Borg must have missed something," was all Mike said.

 _That's hardly likely,_ thought Jay, but he said nothing. This problem needed to be taken care of - immediately.

They ran down the hall.

"The lights aren't going off," said Jay.

"I shut down the alarm system so you could focus," said Mike.

 _Strange._

Jay rushed into the room with the faulty generator. He threw his coat to the ground and slid to a halt next to it.

The green light was steady. It was purring like a kitten. Jay's eyebrows furrowed. "What…?!"

The door slammed behind him. Jay stiffened.

 _Trap_.

"What…what are you doing?" he asked, turning around to look at Soro. "Why is the generator fine? And are you _really_ Mike Soro?"

Soro grinned. "Have you ever looked closely at Zane's power source?"

Jay moaned. "Dude, it's been a long day. Can you skip the elaborate back story and just tell me a summary?"

Soro sighed. "Okay fine. Zane's inventor made another power source JUST like Zane's. But this one is better - more modern with some different advantages. Every night Zane has to recharge, right? Well this one generates it's own power. Problem is, I can't break into it."

"Wait, how did you get this power?" demanded Jay. "It should have been given to Zane after his dad died."

"Let's just say to get ahead in the modern world, you need to be sneaky. The fact is, it doesn't matter," said Soro with a sneer. "I want to use it to build an army."

"Wow. Somebody has goals," said Jay. "And how are you going to build an entire army from one little generator?"

"It doesn't matter," said Soro irritably. "Because I can't get into it. So I was thinking, 'why should I use this little bitty thing when I know someone who could power all of Ninjago?'"

"Um," said Jay with a gulp. "That would probably kill me. I know I'm the Master of Lightning, but even Master's have days off!"

"I am going to need someone's help," protested Soro mildly.

"And I would never agreed to that," said Jay. "Us ninja are totally going to stop you."

"Wrong," said Soro dangerously. "You are going to help me wether you want to or not."

And out of no where, without warning, Jay was pinned down. He cried out in surprise as his body was slammed into the ground.

"Jay Walker, meet Winston 23," said Soro grinning.

Jay turned his head as far as he could. A large robot was pinning him down - a large, scary looking robot. Blue and gray metal armor, small, camera eyes, and a menacing amount of strength.

"He's made with a special metal," said Soro proudly. "You can't fight him - his metal armor takes away your powers."

 _Just like on Chen's Island_ , thought Jay. He felt the familiar draining effect, and moaned.

"Stop struggling," said Soro. "If you just agree to my terms and policies you won't have to go through anything awful."

"Oh yeah? And why would I agree to help you?" snarled Jay. _This guy is messed up on the inside,_ he thought.

"Because," said Soro. "Your life - or rather all of Ninjago - depends on it. If you don't help me, then I will destroy you from the inside out. If you help me, you can at least save some of the city. The people will listen to you."

"They will be afraid of me, you mean," said Jay, narrowing his eyes.

"Call it what you will," said Soro. "You can't change the name of torture." He held up a drill.

Jay gave a shuddering breath. _Sorry Nya_. _Looks like I can't marry you for a little while longer._

"There **_is_** another name for torture," said Jay, inner strength pumping through his veins. "Sacrifice. Strength. Will." He looked at Soro with a defiant smirk. " ** _My choice._** "

"Wow," said Soro, mildly surprised. He turned on the drill. "You are a lot more poetic than I thought."

()

They all knew something was wrong when they couldn't get a hold of him. After pacing for two hours straight, Cole took charge and said, "We can't be weak for tomorrow. Let's take shifts."

Nya wanted the first one. After that, even though Zane came and tried to tell her that he was fully capable of taking the next shift alone, she still waited up for Jay. After that Cole didn't even try to move her when he saw her defiant expression. And so all night, through every single shift, Nya waited through the night for Jay.

The next morning at sunrise, Kai walked out for his shift. Nya sat, staring out the window, head resting in the palm of her hand. He sighed and laid a hand on her shoulder. "Nya, you should have slept."

"No." Her soft voice was still hard. "Something has happened. I know it. He would never just stay out all night like that."

Kai nodded. "Let me get the others."

He didn't have to. There was a sudden outburst of shouting and everyone ran into the living room. Zane was shouting something about the TV, and Dessie ran out in her pjs with her healing bag in her hand.

"What's going on?" cried Kai, startled and really not ready for anything loud this early in the morning.

Zane didn't answer but only pointed to the screen. The news for the day was showing, but this time a breaking-news-story was flashing with a serious message.

"At 5 a.m. this morning," said the female broadcaster, somewhat pale, "every social media user in the five mile radius of Char Street received a message that a show is going to be held in Memorial Park, at exactly 7 a.m. this morning. A show that is supposed to announce the new ruler of Ninjago."

The ninja started, dumbfounded.

"We didn't have internet," whispered Cole.

"A stage seems to be waiting for us in that very park," said the broadcaster, "and the main piece of information that we have right now is that this person claims to have one of the ninja - the Master of Lightning, otherwise known as Jay Walker." She looked down, biting her lip. "We all have a lot of questions right now."

The door to the Bounty living room slammed shut as everyone mounted their bikes. Even Dessie and Nya had been given bikes now - everyone was supposed to be able to get going quickly, and while a car was more protection, bikes had more speed and flexibility.

Nya rode behind Zane and in front of Dessie. They drove forward in a line, racing for Memorial Park. As they raced along, passing cars and darting in and out of traffic, Nya's heart raced in fear. _Please be ok,_ she thought to Jay. _And please let us get there in time._

()

People lined the park. It was full of people, and the ninja carefully and quietly mixed themselves into the crowd.

"Can you guys hear me?"

Cole's voice reached all of their ears through the special com links that Zane and Jay had made. They were almost invisible to the naked eye, and perfect for missions like this. Nya sighed and said, "Samurai here."

"Full Fire here." Kai's voice was a little smug. He'd picked that com-name himself.

"Snowman, here." Zane's voice came on, and it was so serious that everyone chuckled a little. Jay had picked that name.

"Sunshine, here," said Dessie. Cole had picked that one.

"Here's the plan," said Cole. "Dessie, get ready. Be ready to jump in and grab Jay - we don't know what condition he's in."

Nya bit her lip and tried not to let her imagination run away with her.

"Kai, get near the front. I think that's where the action will be."

"By the stage?" asked Kai. The stage in the middle of the park was erect and at that moment a truck was parking next to it.

"No, by the porte-potties!" said Cole sarcastically. They all heard Kai mutter something unintelligible but obviously angsty under his breath, and then Cole continued. "Zane, get in the middle. Stay by the people - make sure nothing happens to them."

"What about me?" asked Nya.

Silence.

"Cole?"

"You can be in the front with Kai," said Cole, with a sigh. "But listen to me: I know he's your boyfriend and he would do ANYTHING for you, but trust your head in this one, ok? Be careful, and don't get into unnecessary trouble."

"Thanks Cole," she said softly, and pushed her way to the front.

Kai was next to her in a moment. His hair was pulled over his eyes, and his hood on his hoodie was up. He looked so punk that she giggled a little. He snorted at her and said, "You should see yourself, blondie."

She stopped laughing. She'd forgotten about the wig.

They had all disguised themselves, just in case this was an attack on the ninja. Nya looked up at the stage. _Where are you?_ she thought, eyes darting through the crowd. _Who are you? And why have you taken Jay?_

"Ahem…"

The crowd hushed. Out of no where, a mic had been used.

"Is…is this thing on?" came a nasal voice.

"It's on!" Cole's impatient voice came from somewhere in the crowd. "What do you want with us?!"

The crowd murmured in agreement. Everyone was a little bit frightened.

Onto the stage stepped someone that Nya had never seen before. A fat little man, sweating, holding the microphone in his left hand, and a remote control in the right. His eyes darted around, and he said in the same nasally voice, "I am Mike Soro."

 _Mike Soro!_ Nya's eyes widened. He and Jay worked together! _He must be behind this,_ Nya decided, and her eyes narrowed.

"And I," the fat man continued, "am here to tell you how things will be from now on."

"And why would we ever listen to you?!" shouted Kai. "You're just a man with a microphone!"

"And a wicked ninja," said Soro, and his face drastically changed from nervous to wickedly delighted.

The crowd stilled. "'Ninja'?" the whisper passed through the crowd. "What does he mean, 'ninja'?"

"Master of Lightning," called Soro. "Come oooouuuuuuut."

The crowd gasped in surprise - one of their very own ninja?

Out of the shadows, where no one had even thought to look, stepped a strange thing.

He was all metal. Well, mostly. His legs were armored with heavy plates of it. He wore a grey tunic with faded, tattered blue edging. His arms were encased in large, metal sheets of armor, and his dark blue cloak swirled about his legs. Only a part of his face could be seen; a large, metal mask with some sort of camera was covering his right eye and side of his head.

The crowd erupted in fury. Ninjago loved it's ninja, and this was an outrage. They had been betrayed!

"Everyone!" came Dessie's urgent cry in the comlink. "He is in really delicate shape. Make no mistake - Jay has only one eye now. That helmet is embedded into his head!"

Nya felt sick. _Jay, what has he done to you?!_


	2. Chapter 2

**Hi guys! So there had been an error on my part and this chapter had been originally published with Chapter 1. Sorry! Here it is as I should have pasted it - as Chapter 2. Because of this error I** **will go ahead and post Chapter 3 for those of you who have already read the chapter below. Thanks so much for all of your reviews and messages - I love your feedback!**

"What have you done to him?!" screamed a young child's voice next to Cole's elbow. Cole looked down and saw a little boy, tears running down his little face as he clutched a Master of Lightning action figure. Cole's heart was aching for his friend, but it ached again for this child. Leaning down, he said softly, "Do you recognize me?"

The boy looked up, lip trembling, confused at this stranger talking to him. "What?"

Cole pointed to the ninja on the child's shirt. "I'm this one," he said, pointing to his image on the shirt and showing the hilt of his katana under his hoodie.

The child stared with wide blue eyes.

"There's always hope, kiddo. Even when it doesn't look like it," said Cole with a wink, and then started moving to the front of the crowd. "What is your name?"

"Timothy," said the child, sniffling.

"You be strong, ok?" said Cole. _Hope he remembers that,_ he thought. _Now, let's get to business!_

But someone was already ahead of him.

 _NYA!_ Cole nearly yelled her name. She had pulled herself up onto the stage and was standing in between Soro and Jay.

 ** _"What have you done to him?!"_**

She had no microphone, but the crowd hushed at the dangerous edge in her voice.

"Ha!" Soro's voice was hard as he said, "I improved him. He was all sassy and rebellious before I put him under."

Nya was trembling with rage. Cole shouted into the com-link, "Stop! No one else get up there! If it becomes a fight, then we need to be the element of surprise! Kai just stay close. Don't get involved yet!"

"What are you doing this?!" screamed Nya, ignoring Cole.

"She's my sister," protested Kai into the com-link. "I have to get up there!"

"Kai," came Zane's urgent voice. "I have detected that there are enemies behind this stage! The moment any ninja appear I have a feeling that the people will be the first target!"

The image of the little boy flashed in Cole's mind.

"I am here," Soro was saying. "To be the next ruler of Ninjago."

Cole got a little closer. _Ruler of Ninjago?_ He thought. There hadn't been a ruler since around 200 years ago, when the last tyrant of Ninjago died. Now there was a democracy.

"You can't be a ruler!" shouted Kai's voice. "The ninja will stop you!"

"And the people!" added Nya.

"You think I would try to take over Ninjago without taking into account it's guardians?!" laughed Soro. "You take me for a fool!"

"I take you for the horrible, smelly, two faced fat bellied jealous idiot that you are!" screamed Nya in his face.

"Whoa," said Cole, Kai, and Zane.

"Go Nya!" cried Dessie in delight.

Soro's face turned purple, and then he calmed himself. "I suppose you just don't see how things are," he said. "Even with the wig, I know who you are. You are Nya Tefuto, obviously. No one else in this world could be as fiery and rebellious as you are. Or loyal, for that matter. It's why Jay loved you."

" _Loves_ ," corrected Nya with a snarl. "He's still in there!"

"I hate to break it to you," started Soro, then laughed. "Actually I _delight_ in telling you that I made sure he can never come back."

"How," demanded Nya.

"You wouldn't understand," he laughed. "I am a genius of a scientist and - "

"The only way you could totally remove who he is is if you took the barometer of this contraption and used a five sided Tenderetop and erase half of his neutrons in his brain," snapped Nya. "Is that what you did?!"

Soro stared uncertainly. He was a good liar, but bad on the spot.

"You didn't," she said, a triumphant smile on her face. "And I am taking him home!"

"You could always join me," Soro attempted feebly.

Nya's leg swung and caught him behind the knee. He feel with a very loud thud (don't forget, he was very fat). Nya spun and kicked again, this time practically shoving him from the stage. People moved quickly to get out of his way as Soro fell to the ground with a thud, breaking the microphone with his fall.

"Like I would ever join you, you…you… ** _monster_**!" She screamed.

But from the ground, holding his aching leg, Soro just chuckled, and then laughed. "I'm not the monster," he laughed. "I'm the scientist." He looked up at her darkly and grinned. "I **_made_** the monster." And with that, he pressed a button on the remote that everyone had forgotten about.

Nya heard a sound behind her and turned. Jay was looking at her, and he had moved his arm. She looked at him - they were of equal height - and her breath caught in her lungs. She'd never seen that sort of look on his face. She'd seen him very serious, and even angry. But this look was worse. Much much much worse.

It was blank.

Nothing.

No emotion. No feeling.

No warmth. Not even cold. Not even hate.

Just nothing.

Jay's arms suddenly swung, and she heard a _shing!_ as two metal katanas were unsheathed from their hiding places beneath his arms. The crowd gasped, and Nya's heart dropped to her toes. She dodged as he sliced the air she had been standing in, and with a scream of terror she rolled and leapt out of the way as he followed up with a second slice.

"Jay!" screamed Kai. "Stop!"

"ADVANCE!" screamed Cole into the com-link. "STOP HIM!"

Nya rolled again, but not fast enough. Jay's katana caught the leg of her jeans, and she was secured to the stage. She jerked and yanked, but he was closing in for the kill. The crowd gasped - this was all happening so fast no one could do anything at all.

Nya began to cry as she watched the love of her life raise his katana over his head, ready to kill her.

"Jay," she cried, tears falling. "I love you!"

He froze. She stared - had Zane done something? But no - there was no ice on him.

Jay's face contorted, and he breathed deeply. The katanas disappeared back into his arms, and he fell to his knees, groaning.

"Jay," gasped Nya, freed from the stage. She rushed to him and held his face in her hands, kneeling with him. "Jay, are you with me? Are you ok?"

"Ow," he wheezed, but he gave her a lopsided smile. "You…did something with your hair, didn't you."

Her eyes welled up with tears again. "I love you. Dessie will be here any minute and dope you up with pain killers."

He was breathing hard. "I…get away," he moaned suddenly, turning away. "…he's pushing all the buttons…" he looked up at her, eye pleading. "…Nya, run!"

Suddenly all the pain, anguish, and love disappeared. He stood up, straight as a pole. His blank face returned, and so did the katanas. He swung, and Nya knew instantly that this was it. She was going to die.

CLANG!

"Nya," came Kai's impatient voice. "RUN!"

Nya opened her tightly shut eyes to see her brother fighting Jay off. Cole was leaping onstage, and suddenly chaos erupted. Giant robots were climbing onstage too, and the people were screaming and running for their lives. Soro was laughing, and Zane was rushing up to the stage, defending the people and helping them escape.

"RUN!" screamed Kai, parrying an attack and blocking a kick from Jay. Nya jumped up and out of the way. "We can't leave him!" she cried.

"Dessie is coming with the Bounty," shouted Zane. "We have to protect the people!"

"Get the robots!" cried Cole. "Nya, use your water powers and kill them!"

Nya tried. She was still learning how to use her water powers on her own. She killed a lot of them, but there were a ton to begin with. And then they all heard a scream of agony that made the world stop turning for a moment.

Kai was on the ground, blood gushing from his right leg. He was trying to pull himself away from Jay, who towered over him with a bloodied katana. Zane recovered first and froze Jay's arms to his sides.

"Kai!" cried Nya, horrified at all the blood, when the lights of the Bounty shown down on them. Cole rushed over and scooped Kai up in his arms. "Hang in there, fireball," he said gruffly, though obviously concerned. Dessie let down the anchor, and it nearly broke through the stage.

"Get on!" shouted Dessie into the com-links.

"We can't leave Jay!" cried Nya.

"We aren't leaving him," said Zane, placing a forceful hand on her shoulder. "We are coming back for him. But your brother won't die in the process!"

"But - " started Nya, but then Zane gave her a look that told her don't-make-me-freeze-you-too, and resignedly she joined him.

Kai was rushed to the newly made healing cabin, and Dessie gave the controls to Cole. Zane helped her as she began to minister to Kai, and Nya quietly walked down into her room.

And for the second time in her life, she cried and cried and cried.

()

Dessie tried hard to help. Kai's leg was stitched quickly and with precision, and then heavily bandaged. She hummed gently, trying to settle her own nerves as well as bring something - she didn't know, maybe…relief? - to Kai's heart. But he didn't seem to notice anything - not the stitches, the wound, or her humming. As he lay in the bed, propped up by pillows, he stared with tear-filled eyes at the ceiling.

The healing cabin was warm and welcoming, with soft cream walls and lit candles on little shelves on the walls. The beds were built into the walls, and picture frames with pictures of everyone were in them. The latest picture Zane had taken of all of them had Jay in the front, making a monkey face. Nya was laughing, and Cole was making his I-can't-believe-how-immature-you-are face. Kai's heart hurt as he remembered the last image his mind had of Jay. Standing over him, sword drawn, ready to smite him. Face cold, dark, and emotionless.

Suddenly he felt something on his leg. Something wet. He looked up to see Dessie wipe a tear off of his bare calf. She was crying as she finished the last of his bandages.

"Dess?" he asked softly, his own tears making his voice sound cracked and deep. He looked at her, and felt his heart warm a little.

"I'm sorry," she hiccuped. She always did when she cried. "This is all I can do!" she gestured at his leg, frustration on her face. "I want to fix this," she sobbed. "But all I can tell you is to rest and not break the stitches!" She looked down, just crying out of hopelessness. "I thought maybe as a healer I could make a difference here. I guess not."

It hurt him to see her so down. "You aren't a miracle worker," he protested. "My leg just needs to heal, that's all. Besides, Zane is never so gentle."

"No," she wept, shaking her head furiously. Leaning forward, she laid a hand on his chest. "I want to heal your _heart_." She took a deep breath, trying to stop the hiccups. "Tell me what I can do." She looked up at him. "Tell me what I can do for your heart."

He looked at her and was lost again in her lovely eyes. They were puffy and tear filled, but still just as beautiful as ever. Mountains. Grassy hills. Love.

"Hold me," he whispered, and she saw his raw emotions. Anger. Fear. Loss. Betrayal. Pain.

She caught him up in a fast, but very tender hug. Her arms encircled him and held him closely, and her hand rested in the nape of his neck, soft and warm. His arms wrapped around her small form, but he felt smaller still in her motherly, loving embrace.

Something touched his cheek. He opened his eyes and his breath catch in his lungs. Little golden lights were gently floating around him, pulsing with a gentle light. A calming light. Like snow drifting down from invisible clouds, these golden lights floated around him, causing the room to suddenly feel cozier. He stared, trying to understand what he was seeing.

"Fireflies?" he whispered.

Dessie chuckled; a sweet, surprising sound. "No. This is my power." He could hear her blush in her smile. "I guess I've never shown it to you."

He stared, and then felt her heartbeat against his chest and realized that the lights were pulsating with her heart. _With her life,_ he thought, and with a shuddering breath hugged her tighter, tears drying on his face.

"You know, I want you to be more careful," she said softly. "You nearly died last time you were in here. I'd be so lost without you, Kai."

He pulled away and held her hands in his, stroking the silver band with gem flowers on her promised ring finger.

"I love you."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Zane and Dessie got over everything faster than anyone else, so they talked long into the night about what to do. After long discussion, they brought everyone into the brig.

"We aren't running away," stated Zane, looking directly at Nya. "Ninja never quit."

"And we aren't cowering," said Dessie sternly, this time to everyone. "Ninja face their enemies."

"But this will be our most challenging opponent," said Zane. His eyes darkened slightly, and his gaze fell as he murmured, barely over a whisper, "Because he is our friend."

"But don't forget," said Dessie sternly. She was taking lead over this, as she was the least affected by all of this. Her heart still hurt from it, but she said, "Don't forget that he is being controlled by someone else. The things he is doing are not by his choice, yet he is being forced to do them."

She turned away and used the brig to pull up an image of Jay's transformation. Nya looked at it, face cold. It wasn't Jay. It would never be him. This monster had been created by Soro, no more.

"After scanning Jay, Zane found that Soro has only done physical calibration to Jay's mind," she said. Painfully, she added, "By putting a remote controlled receiver through his…his eye."

There was a sickening silence.

"I am going to kill Soro when I find him," growled Cole fiercely. Even Dessie felt a chill as she looked into the face of her older brother, and knew that she did not want to see what Cole might be capable of under that amount of rage.

"Get in line," grunted Nya. Kai glanced at her and saw an equally chilling glare on her face. _What would she do if given the chance…?_ He wondered.

"Guys, stop!" said Dessie firmly. A darkness and poisonous mood had come over them, and in her heart of hearts she knew it was to be expected. However, as the healer, she had secretly taken responsibility for the wellbeing of her new family as well. Zane was affected and Lloyd still wasn't here - no one else could do this.

She looked down and took a deep breath, preparing herself. Lifting her head, she looked at each one with love and truth burning like lights in her eyes. "We fight with honor."

Cole's dark look slowly melted as he looked at his sister. She returned his long gaze and said softly, "All that's up to us is that we get Jay back." She then looked to Nya. "You would all agree that Soro is a piece of trash and good for nothing?"

"Yes," chorused the ninja.

"Then don't waste the effort," said Dessie. "He's already going to be in jail his whole life. Let fate deal with him. Jay is the only thing we need to worry about for now. Once we have him, we can help _the law_ deal with the rest."

A soft breath seemed to pass through the room as the seething rage and bitter hatred melted away, and all that was left were the sad, hurt faces of her team. She smiled at them and said lovingly, "We'll get through this." She looked at Cole, then Nya, and rested her gaze on Kai. "I promise."

She motioned to the holographic image of Jay that Zane had left on. "Now, back to Jay."

"In a fight against him, we could never win," said Zane, seeing the opportunity to speak. "He is in constant communication with Soro, and the helmet he has possesses a technology not too distantly related to that of my own. It gives him the ability to learn of us and improve in the middle of a fight. Now, as to his armor - " here Zane changed the image to only the armor on Jay's body - "it is an enhancer of his lightning abilities. He is now 300% stronger and deadly."

"Wait - so let's say I get zapped…?" asked Kai.

"You would be completely fried if you were four feet away from his target," said Dessie quietly, her large eyes grave as Zane changed the image back to Jay's full image.

There was an uneasy silence.

"Is he still in there?" asked Cole, gazing at the holographic image of his friend. Jay's face looked so emotionless - he hardly looked himself.

"Yes," said Zane softly. "And we are going to get him back. The chance of succeeding is almost impossible, but we've never let that stop us."

"So, what are we going to do?" asked Cole, dark brows furrowed.

"In the simplest of words," said Zane, "Our objective is to disconnect Jay from the device."

"That's easy enough," said Kai.

Dessie was alarmed. "Nonono," she said quickly. "You can't just rip it out of his head. It was to be removed surgically, and nothing short of killing him would make him keep still."

"The plan is to make a special powder," said Zane. "This powder will knock him unconscious for two days. This will give us ample time to surgically remove the mask and transmitter."

"So the mission," said Cole slowly, "Is to go up to Jay, throw this… _powder_ at him, and bring him back so that you can work on him?"

Dessie bit her lip. "In essence, yes. But we all know that there is a whole lot more to that sentence." She picked up her satchel. "The powder is rare. Like, too rare for Ms. Takae to carry in her store. I have to go to Jamonikai Peak to get the ingredients."

Cole looked at her quickly. "Jamonikai Peak?!"

She sighed. "I'll be careful, I promise. Besides, Nya is coming with me."

"No I'm not." Nya's quiet voice startled them all. "I am going to save Jay. I can't leave him."

Dessie didn't budge on the matter. "I need help and he is stronger than he has ever been," she said in a firm voice that startled everyone even more. "The fact of it is, the guys are going to have a hard time battling him. Let them take care of it - I need the delicate touch of a samurai to help me with the ingredients and get Jay out of this horrible situation."

Nya looked away. "I know I can stop him. He listened to me before," she said, tears causing her voice to become deep and cracked.

Kai sighed and hobbled over to her. "Nya, look at me."

Nya's proud shoulders slowly drooped, and she turned to see her brother gazing at her with a set jaw, and tears in his eyes. "Did you know that I almost gave us up for adoption?"

Everyone stared. "Kai, I don't think now is a good time - " began Dessie, but Cole laid a hand on her arm. "He's getting to her," he whispered softly.

Nya's eyes stared in shock and confusion at Kai. "What?"

"I was helpless, and we were little when Mom and Dad died," said Kai. "Just how I feel now. But I knew what I had to do. And _out of my love for you,_ I stayed at Four Weapons."

Kai's tears slipped over the brink, and landed on the wooden floor with a soft plop. "I know this hurts you," he said, voice cracking. "But you have to do this. We have to save him, Nya. And there is only one way."

She buried her head in his shoulder and began to cry. He hugged her tightly and began crying too. The rest of the group stared at the sacred bond between the siblings. _How many times have they held each other and cried alone?_ Wondered Dessie, and silently went to them and hugged them both in her small embrace. Then large arms encircled them and gently squeezed as Cole joined, and then Zane came and wrapped his arms around them too.

From deep inside the tender group hug, Nya said sniffled and said, "Fine. I'll go pick flowers. But it had better work."

The group hug dissolved and Dessie took charge. "Let's get going!" She said, and rushed out of the room. "And Kai - " she called suddenly, poking her head back in. "You are in charge of the Bounty - you are not going to be out and about with that leg."

Kai moaned, and then they got to work.

()

Nya shifted the pack on her back and rubbed her tired eyes. She hadn't been able to sleep very well, and now was paying the price. The deck of the bounty was clean and the light from the sunrise gently touched it and chased away the shadows of night. The chilly winter air bit at her rosy cheeks and froze the tears that began to fall.

 _Let him be alright,_ she thought. _Let me be fast enough._

Dessie stepped out and mounted her bike. "There was a frost last night," she murmured, eyes darkening as she looked at the skies. "We'll have to move fast." She suddenly noticed Nya listening and gave her a wink.

"We'll find the plants," she said, offering the strength that Nya couldn't seem to find. "Nya, we'll do it."

"Wouldn't the Samurai Mech be faster?" asked Nya. "I just don't think we'll be able to find the plants in time!"

"The Mech is too big," said Dessie. "Remember - we need the agility of the bikes. Also, if someone saw the Mech, they might know its us and report it to Soro."

Nya sighed in agreement. She knew that while faster, it would in reality hurt the mission to use the Mech.

They started the bikes and left without wasting another minute. Nya followed Dessie, and tried to keep up. Dessie had hiked this mountain before in secret, trying to discover new plants. Nya knew about _that_ only because she'd been sworn to secrecy after discovering Dessie sneaking back into the Bounty.

Dessie smoothly avoided potholes and faithfully gave signals on where to turn. "Almost there!" she called. They slowed after a few more minutes as they arrived to a frost-clad grove.

"This is where some of them should be. Here is a picture guide for you," she said, handing a small book to Nya. "It has pictures of the plants you will need."

"Did you make this this morning?" asked Nya, surprised. "When did you have time?"

"You aren't the only one who couldn't sleep," said Dessie softly, large eyes serious.

Nya had no answer to that, and so they began searching for the fragile green plants; the only hope of bringing Jay home.

()

Kai steered the Bounty back to Ninjago. His leg was throbbing, but he was putting off taking the pain killers. _I am not weak,_ he told himself.

 _Then why are you stuck on the Bounty, while even Dessie does something important?_

That little annoying voice ticked Kai off. He had to tell himself calmly that the best thing he could do was wait for Dessie to see how well his leg was doing, and then he could fight.

 _Unless the battle has already been lost,_ sneered the voice. _How can you just sit here while Jay is suffering somewhere? Cole and Zane can't go on without you. How can you let yourself be so -_

"I'M NOT WEAK!" screamed Kai aloud, his own voice hurting his ears. He punched the auto-pilot button and sank to the floor in a flood of tears.

 _Then why are you crying._

"Because I am hurt," he sobbed. "And…and…I'm helpless."

 _When all your strength runs out,_ said a familiar voice in his head, _then your strength is determined. When you have nothing left to give, who you really are is revealed. When you are weak, who are you? When you are broken, what are you?_

 ** _When you are helpless, who are you?_**

"Help me, Sensei," cried Kai. "Help me!"

 _Kai, who_ ** _are_** _you?_

"I…I…" stammered Kai, unsure. "I…"

Suddenly Kai's phone went off. He looked at the text and saw it was from Dessie. Unlocking his phone, he touched the image that Dessie had sent.

She was on the mountain, holding up some plants. Her smile was radiant, and he felt a sudden need for another one of her hugs. Suddenly she sent another message, saying:  
"Hey Kai! We have already had some luck with the plants. Love you, Firecracker! I promise I'll see you soon! Take care of the Bounty while I'm gone, and keep and eye on Cole will ya? Love you babe!"

 _If my job is to pilot the Bounty,_ thought Kai suddenly, _then by golly I will do it and ain't nothing gonna stop me!_

And with that, he got to his feet and began manually piloting the Bounty straight for Ninjago City, a dangerous, determined look his narrowed brown eyes. _We are coming, Jay! Hold on!_

()

Cole and Zane were let down some blocks away from where the actual "show" had taken place. Cole stared at the smoldering remains of many buildings and cars.

"It's looks like a war has broken out here!" He said, staring at the blackened streets.

"That observation might not be far from the actual occurrence," said Zane, scanning the area. "I see no bodies, however. Hopefully no one has lost their lives to Soro's plans. Now, if only we can find Cyrus Borg. I'm sure he'll be able to help us."

"I hope we can find him soon," said Cole. "It looks like Soro has destroyed over half the city."

"Zane?" came a soft whisper. "Zane, my love, is that you?"

"P.I.X.A.L.!" cried Zane, rushing to the alleyway on his right. Cole followed him, curious.

"Oh Zane it IS you!" said the white robot, coming out of hiding. Her eyes were green and glowing as usual, and she and Zane hugged tightly. "Cole, this is my future wife," said Zane, turning to the amused ninja of earth. "P.I.X.A.L., this is Cole. He is my brother in a sense, and we are trying to find Borg. Where is everyone? Where is Borg?"

"We have safely evacuated many people to the catacombs under the city foundations," said P.I.X.A.L. "We are trying now to plan how to get rid of Soro. Borg believes that he has found a way to hack into the system of the other robots."

"Where is he now?" asked Zane.

"Follow me," said P.I.X.A.L., and led them to a manhole. With surprising strength, she opened it and they lowered themselves into the darkness below.

P.I.X.A.L. and Zane both lit up the darkness, and Cole walked between them as they continued their trek to the heart of the city.

"Once Borg hacks into the robots, what is his plan?" asked Zane.

"To initiate their self-destruct," said P.I.X.A.L., hand brushing against the cold wall of the catacomb. "Once all of the people are below the city, we will initiate the self-destruct to go off, and the city will be saved from the robots and from Soro. Borg has no idea what to do about Jay, however."

"We have a plan for that," said Cole. "Maybe if we put our plans together we can actually win."

"That does seem to be the best course of action," said Zane and P.I.X.A.L. in unison, then grinned sheepishly at each other.

"Zane, are you able to blush?" asked Cole, a smile tugging on his lips.

"No," said the ninja. "Perhaps I should try to make a way for me to posses that color-changing ability."

"P.I.X.A.L., are you able to?"

"Master Borg said that if I desired it, I could," she said. "But I spoke with some people who do have that ability, and they desperately wished they didn't have to have it."

They continued in silence for a little ways, and then came into a large large room. Zane and Cole recognized it as the old headquarters where they had nearly succeeded against Pythor in capturing the four Fangblades, and where Garmadon and his army of skeletons had actually joined forces with the ninja against the snakes.

All of that was already so long ago. One of the many legends of Ninjago etched in the past.

The room at the moment was filled with people all wearing the same expression - they looked lost. Sad. Scared.

"The ninja," breathed someone. The murmur passed through the crowd, and people rose to their feet and looked at them.

"You are an image of hope," whispered P.I.X.A.L., leading them through the crowd. "Say something to them."

"It's you!" interrupted a small voice. Cole looked down to see the small child who had been at the park when all of this mess had unfolded. His tousled blonde hair was dirty, and his dirt smudged face reminded Cole of Lloyd when they had first taken him into their care. Now this little child was excitedly hugging Cole's leg and showing him to his weary looking mother.

"Hey kid," said Cole, a smile on his face. "How are you? Hey, what's your name?"

"I'm Timothy," said the boy, a sparkle in his eyes. "And I'm five!"

"How are you and your mom doing?" asked Cole, trying to be tender to their situation.

"They set fire to our apartment building," said Timothy's mom softly, eyes dim with worry and sleep deprivation. "Even if we make it out, we will be homeless."

"But mama," said Timothy, tugging on her arm, "we'll be ok, see? Cole will help us! He's my friend!"

His mother sighed. "With all due respect," she said, eyes darting away, "maybe your _friend_ could have stopped it before it got this bad."

Cole quickly put on his poker face. With a quick smile to Timothy and a proper hug, he sent the boy on his way with his friends and caught up to Zane.

"Some people never really appreciate us," he said under his breath to the white ninja. "I always know it's possible not to get a thank you, but still. Keep the hate to yourself! It's not like we walked away without any scratches."

"Cole," said Zane with a gentle smile, "Dashed hopes bring out the worst in us. She might have had the most hope in us and our abilities, but now feels the vulnerability of having heroes who have been soundly challenged. She's a victim. And now psychologically she is dealing with the reality as she can see it. Have grace. She is the ball in this tennis match - either way, she loses."

"There you are!" cried a voice. Cole turned to see Cyrus Borg wheeling himself over in his wheelchair, waving at them excitedly.

"Boys, we must work quickly!" said the genius as he reached them. "There are still people above ground, and time is of the essence. I have everything ready to initiate the self-destruct, but the blast could be deadly and we don't want anyone getting hurt. The majority of the bots are with Soro himself, but some are scattered around the city. I also want to spare Jay any physical damage if possible."

"He's not in the system, is he?" Asked Cole. "He won't self-destruct too?"

"No," said Borg. "He is in a completely different system that Soro has personally encrypted and controls using a remote that he keeps on his person at all times. However, if he is near any bots the force of the explosion will be deadly for him as well."

"Let's go up!" said Cole. "We'll bring down anyone from up above and do a sweep of the city. We'll keep an eye out for Jay too."

"Good work, boys!" said Cyrus. "Now go - save Ninjago!"


	4. Chapter 4

CHAPTER 4

 _"I would never hurt you," he said, wrapping his arms around her. His blue eyes were so filled with innocence, and everything in her loved him so much -_

 _And then suddenly he was gone. She was standing there, now so empty in the darkness._

 _"Nya! Nya, save me!"_

 _"Where are you?!" she tried to yell, but somehow could only whisper. She slapped a hand over her mouth in a silent scream as a body landed next to her._

 _His body._

 _It was broken, mangled, bloody…_

 _"NO!"_

()

"NO!" screamed Nya, sitting up with a start.

"Nya?" asked Dessie from across the fire. She had been taking the first watch while Nya slept. There were purple circles under her eyes, yet her gaze was focused and alert.

"It…it was just a bad dream," said Nya, but she didn't lay back down. The golden flames licked the air hungrily, and seemed to chase away the darkness of her dream.

Dessie gave a slight nod of understanding, then looked away.

There was a slightly awkward silence, and Nya stood and came to the fire. It was warm and comforting after the chill of the nightmare.

"Do you want to talk about it?" asked Dessie.

"No," said Nya quickly.

There was a pause.

"I had many bad dreams at Chen's Island," said Dessie, voice soft and low. Her eyes gazed into the fire, as if she was very far away. "And there was never anyone to talk to. I was all alone."

She looked to Nya, tears in her eyes. "You are surrounded by people who love you," she said. "Even I love you. And so I cannot understand why you feel so alone."

Dessie shifted closer to Nya and gazed into her troubled face. "Help me understand you," she said. "We made so much progress today, and yet you are so…discouraged. Help me understand you better."

"Why?" asked Nya, her tone hard and her eyes angry. "Why do you care so much?" Dessie sat up a little bit straighter, chilled by the blunt and closed response. Nya regretted the sharpness of her tone, but didn't bother apologizing. Dessie waited, seeing the regret in Nya's eyes and wanting to give her a chance. Nya didn't take it, and so setting her jaw Dessie said, "Because I love you."

Nya looked away.

Dessie gazed at the back of Nya's head, then let out a soft sigh. The fire gave an extra flicker, the light in tune with her emotions, and then went back to normal. Slowly turning to face the welcome fire, she said, "Nya, I am here for you. If you don't want to open up, let it all out, cry, scream, or depend on me, I'll be ok. Just know that the moment you call, I'll be here."

And with that she got up and went to her own blanket in the insulating snow, and drifted into sleep, fingers clutching a silver band that symbolized the promise of her future, and made her feel like she was sleeping in her own bed, far away from the troubles of tomorrow. Even so, she would not sleep well. The feeling of doom seemed to have seeped into even her soul, and the dark fears of the night did not let her dream of happiness to come. "Morning," she whispered softly, tears sparkling in her eyes, "please come soon."

()

"Hold still!" snarled Soro as he unscrewed a bolt from Jay's armored arm. Jay was strapped down to a table, where Soro was adjusting a few modifications to his new weapon. The armor needed strengthening and a few modifications would make his lightening power unstoppable. However, it had been necessary to take Jay out of the system and let it cool down. Now fully conscious and riled by Soro's cruelty, Jay twitched and squirmed and made it almost impossible for Soro to do anything.

"I…willl…not!" panted Jay, exhausted, but still enraged. "You…monster!"

Soro sighed. "I already told your girlfriend - I _created_ the monster." His fat fingers dropped the screw driver and he bent down to get it, missing the dangerous and rebellious expression in Jay's face.

" ** _I am not your monster!_** " bellowed Jay, lightening shooting out of his fingertips. Soro was blasted across the room, and Jay collapsed limply against the table, gasping for air.

Soro stood up slowly, untangling himself from two of his robots and a shelf of now shattered technology, panting with steam rising up off of him, but a content smile on his face. "I'm going to put this control back on," he said. "You are weak from all the exertion on your powers, and I am going to have to boost it a little. Don't worry," he added. "I'm sure you will only destroy everything you love."

Jay stared at him, horrified. "Why?" he demanded, voice cracking weakly. "Why are you _doing_ this?"

"Maybe I'm tired of being remembered as an assistant," said Soro. "And I'm ready to be a king."

"What did _we_ do to receive this?" demanded Jay. "You made me hurt Kai, nearly _kill_ my love of my life, and now - "

"Now you are going to do much worse," said Soro, and pressed a button on the remote.

And with that, Jay was plunged into that scary dreamworld, where everything he did was not his choice, and horrors passed before his helpless, captive soul.

()

The morning broke on Ninjago, cold sunlight gently touching the smoldering buildings and familiar places in Ninjago with a cold tenderness. Dessie took a deep breath, feeling like her heart was rising with the sun. Her forest colored eyes sparkled with renewed energy - just seeing the sun seemed to do her good. She stood from her watch and gently woke Nya.

"Come, Nya," she said gently. "I have a breakfast bar for you. Let's get going."

Nya sat up sleepily, then shivered. It was still early spring, and the chilly mountain air was intrusive as she left her blankets and the shelter and warmth they held. She likewise stood and wrapped up her blankets, tucking them into her pack. Dessie handed her the bar, and in silence they quickly ate and packed up. As she lifted her helmet from her bike, Dessie said, "There was no frost last night. Let's hope the Venomari Breath is fine."

"It's the last one, right?" asked Nya.

"No," said Dessie. "We need Venomari Breath and Benzamime, and then we will rush to Ms. Takae's. She can mix it better than I can, and after so little sleep I don't trust myself to do this well."

"Let's go," said Nya, and they started their bikes and shoved off, the image of the little green plant in their minds.

The next grove was where they found another place where the fingers of winter were slowly loosening their grip, and green shoots of grass and other plants where beginning to grow. Dessie had barely stopped and parked before her helmet was off and she was on her knees, gloved hands gently brushing away melting snow to give way to the tender shoots where growing.

"Is this it?" asked Nya. "Is that one of them?"

"It's Venomari Breath," said Dessie, grinning. "That one is a hard one to find, and we found it first!" She carefully picked some and placed it into her healer's satchel. It was fitted with pockets, and so each plant was separated neatly.

"Why do you separate them?" asked Nya. "Just to be organized?"

"They will taint each other," said Dessie. "You have to keep them separate to ensure the purity of the plant. And never touch the Venomari Breath with your bare skin," she added. "It puts the 'knock out' into the powder."

"Good to know," said Nya.

"Do you see any Benzamime?" asked Dessie. "It's a purple stalk with silver leaves."

Nya walked over to some blooming ferns. "Is it tall?" she asked.

"It likes shade," called back Dessie. "And no, it's not super tall."

Nya placed her hand on a tree and walked around it, peering into the shadows.

"I found it!" cried Dessie, then suddenly gave a shriek that was soon engulfed in the sound of -

"Landslide!" cried Nya. "Dessie, run!"

Nya threw her arms around the tree, holding on as the shuddering ground around her seemed to melt away and slide forward. The trees roots began to become visible, and it began to creak and lean slightly. "Please stop," Nya pleaded with the mountain. "Please!"

The rumble on the side of the mountain continued for a few minutes that seemed to last forever, and then finally faded. The dust settled, and the pebbles and rocks slid to a halt. Nya, breathing heavily, carefully took a step.

The ground was like sand - unstable. Holding onto the half-submerged plants and trees, Nya tried to find stable ground. Finally she made it to where Dessie had been standing earlier.

"Dessie!" she gasped, seeing Dessie's flailing legs sticking out from under two feet of dirt and debris. _She's suffocating!_ She thought as thrust her hands into the dirt and began flinging it away. _I have to dig her out - now!_

Knowing she only had precious minutes, she dug as fast as she could. The dirt was like wet sand, and so with great handfuls she shoved the dirt off of her friend. Dessie's legs were laying still now, and Nya shoved the dirt harder and harder and harder, breaking fingernails but not even feeling it.

"Don't do it, Dessie!" she screamed, almost there. She had almost all of the dirt off of Dessie, and hope surged as Dessie's shoulder submerged. Nya held out her hands and with geyser-like ferocity sprayed water at the remaining debris. Yanking Dessie up out of the dirt, she held her face three inches away from Dessie's closed eyes and screamed, "DON'T LEAVE ME!"

Dessie coughed dust into Nya's face, and then began gasping for air, tears of pain running down her dust and mud covered face. "Ow," she said, coughing. "That hurt so bad. You got water?"

Nya was only half listening. She began to cry and cry and cry, and yanked Dessie into the hardest of hugs. "I love you!" she sobbed. "You are my sister, and you can't leave too! This time has been awful for me, and I feel like I'm dying inside! I need all of you to be here for me, and I can't do this alone!"

She hugged tighter and sniffled as her tears came to and end. It had been a burst, but she'd used up a lot of water when she'd sprayed the dirt away, and so was feeling empty already. "I…I'm sorry about last night. I…I need you more than I like to admit…please don't leave me too."

Dessie cleared her dusty throat, and patted Nya comfortingly. "Thanks to you, I won't be leaving anytime soon." She added with a smile, "I managed to hold on to the Benzamime."

Nya's eyes bugged and she held Dessie at arms length. "Really?!"

Dessie grinned and held up the mangled, purple plant in her tightly clenched, clay-covered fist. "Let's go to Ms. Take's!"

()

Cole ducked as a laser blast shot nearly took off his head. The teenage boy he was helping get to safety whimpered as they made their way to where P.I.X.A.L. was guiding the remaining civilians to the manhole escape.

"Zane, make a wall!" Cried Cole, throwing up a stone wall himself and blocking a laser blast from frying the last of the men to lower himself into the hole.

"We've got them all!" cried P.I.X.A.L. as she lowered herself into the hole herself. "Guys, come on!"

"There are too many," said Cole, and with a mighty blow punched the earth. A huge barrier wall separated the robots from them now, but already the enemy began climbing the wall. Zane shot some ice blasts and then lifted up another barrier wall, saying, "We need to distract them away from the manhole! Go! We shall meet again!"

"But Zane - " began P.I.X.A.L., but suddenly a blast like no other shattered both barriers and knocked Zane and Cole to the ground.

Cole leapt up right away, and Zane turned to P.I.X.A.L. "NOW!" he shouted. P.I.X.A.L. obeyed, already knowing why there was no logic to her staying.

Through the debris of the ice and earth scattered, wreathed in electricity and smoke, one eye glowing bright blue and katanas humming as electricity coursed up and down the blades, strode Jay. He did not run, or even jog. He walked steadily, almost like a robot himself. His face held no expression, but after a scanning him quickly, Zane cried out, "Cole, I know he looks ready to kill us, but be careful. He is dying."

" _What?!"_ demanded Cole.

"He is being starved," said Zane. "The plans Soro has must not include him much longer, because he is doing nothing to maintain Jay's health."

"But what do we do to stop him?!" cried Cole, feeling powerless against Jay's steady, unwavering approach. "I can't strike him!"

"Let's lead him away from the robots," said Zane. "Borg will need to self-destruct them at any moment - let's go!"

Cole leapt after him and they quickly scaled an apartment building. Zane turned to see if Jay was following them, only to discover that he was not. He had stopped walking and seemed to be waiting. He wasn't even looking at the ninja.

"What's he doing?" asked Cole.

()

Soro sat in front of his computer, smiling. "So," he said. "The ninja thought they could trick me, eh?"

"But you still don't know what they are planning," said Form, glaring. Her violet eyes held him in her gaze as she said, "The Preeminent told you specifically to be patient and wise - "

"The Preeminent put me in charge," said Soro, his frown only making him look fatter. "So let me be _in charge._ "

Form snorted. She had seen Shadow go down when he had tried to take out Kai and the rest of the ninja. She sighed as she realized that Soro too, was probably going to make just _one_ mistake that would **end** him and the operation -

"I have intel that the girls went to Jamonikai Peak," said Soro. "And the ninja stayed here to help the city - _so_ if I send Jay to get the girls, the ninja will be forced to follow him and they will all be in a death struggle while I wait here and take over the city."

"I have a bad feeling about this, but seeing as how you are _in charge -"_ sneered Form -"I'll leave you to it."

Soro rolled his eyes as the shape-shifter left, closing the door behind her. "Creep," He muttered, and began typing into the remote control the next orders. Just as he pressed enter, a soft beeping reached his ears. "What is that?" he asked, then turned to see the three robots standing close to him blinking red lights. "What…who…" he panted, realizing that he had ten seconds left of life. _Who could have done this? Who could have hacked into the system?!_

As the last three seconds counted down, a message popped up on his phone. It was from Cyrus Borg. _Goodbye,_ it read.

"BORG - " screamed Soro, and then everything exploded.

()

Jay suddenly stopped. Cole and Zane watched him wearily, when they heard a soft beeping sound.

"The robots are beeping," said Cole, looking at the robots surrounding Jay. "They are going to self destruct!"

"We have to protect Jay!" cried Zane, and they leapt back down onto the pavement. Jay didn't even seem to notice them. "He is receiving new orders and will not move," said Zane. "Enclose him into an earth and ice bunker!"

To Cole's astonishment, Jay didn't even blink as he and Zane raised up layer after layer of ice and earth around him and inclosed him inside. Inside of the thick, stuffy fortress, Zane lit up. Jay stood completely still, not even conscious of the circumstances around him.

"He's so helpless," murmured Cole.

"And if he decides to, we all will die inside this thing," said Zane.

"Remind me to tell Dessie you'd make a great nurse with that comforting spirit you have," muttered Cole.

Suddenly the time was up. Around them they heard the huge boom of the robots all detonating at the same time. The earth and ice cracked under the pressure, and after the ground stopped shaking under their feet, they broke down part of it and emerged to see the damage of the explosion. The buildings looked worse, but no people had been injured.

"Do you think…" began Zane, when suddenly Jay ran past him, leapt over a building, and disappeared.

"Where is he going?!" demanded Cole, and they chased after him.

"He is going west," said Zane.

"What does that mean?!" cried Cole, exasperated. Suddenly they came to the outskirts of the city limits and saw Jay's shape sprinting towards -

"Jamonikai Peak!" they both gasped.

"Kai," radioed Zane as they ran after Jay. "Go to Jamonikai Peak - NOW! Jay is going after the girls!"

Kai didn't even respond, but as Cole and Zane raced after Jay, The Bounty flew overhead and raced to get the girls first.

The girls were waiting expectantly as Ms. Take worked with the ingredients and ground them into a fine powder. "There it is," said Ms. Take, stuffing the cork lid into the small bottle containing the precious powder. "Good luck Dessie - I know that you are ready for this."

Dessie bowed respectfully to her teacher. "Thank you for this precious knowledge, Mistress Take," she said, and in the background Nya marveled at their relationship.

The girls left the shop, weary but rejoicing in the precious bottle that Dessie carried.

"We did it!" breathed Nya.

"Hey, what is that?" asked Dessie. "Isn't that the - "

"The Bounty!" gasped Nya, and they ran to meet it.

Kai waved from the window, and he brought the Bounty down low so that the girls could easily climb on.

"What's going on!" demanded Dessie as she burst into the brig. "Kai! Why did you pick us up?!"

"Jay is headed this way," said Kai. "Soro must have figured out what was going on and sent him after you girls. Zane and Cole are on his tail - do you have the powder?!"

"Yes," said Nya, hugging her brother. "Everything will be alright."

"I hope so," said Kai, hope tinged with fear in his eyes. "It's not over yet."


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

Jay's path was suddenly obstructed by an earth wall. He stopped, then slowly turned.

"Hey!" yelled Cole, glaring at the expressionless face of his friend. "Stop right there!"

Jay whipped out the katanas and threw a blast at the earth ninja. Zane threw up an ice wall and then yelled, "We have to distract him! Dessie just sent me a message that they are coming!"

Jay dove and raised his katana in order to slice Zane, and Zane quickly parried with his shuriken. "Jay, can you hear us?" demanded the white ninja, trying not to give away the approaching Bounty. Jay's blank face didn't change, and he spun around and struck at Zane again. Cole quickly tried to help Zane and throw a wide shot of earth at Jay in order to distract him, but the blue ninja easily avoided it and was about to take a shot at Cole in turn when a blast from The Destiny's Bounty caused him to duck and look up to see Nya drop down off of the Bounty and lightly land on her feet and hands, vial of knock out powder tucked in her hand.

"Jay!" she called,

Jay said nothing, and only shot a blast of electricity towards her.

"Nya!" screamed Kai from above, but Nya had seen it coming and just as quickly flattened herself to the ground and avoided it.

However, the consequences came without warning.

"Do you feel that?" murmured Cole, eyes clouding with worry as he looked down at the earth. "I think that - AH!" he suddenly screamed, and sank to the ground as Jay yanked the katana out of Cole's shoulder where he had stabbed him.

"Cole!" cried Zane, and shoved Jay away with a block of ice. Cole lay on the ground, moaning and trying to sit up, but failing. "He got me good," he wheezed, grimacing in pain.

"Zane, take it!" cried Nya, throwing the vial of powder to him with a blast of water for good measure. However, everything was interrupted as the earth beneath their feet began to tremble and rumble.

"Landslide," moaned Cole. "I felt it coming - "

"Zane, _catch it!"_ screamed Nya as the vial began it's decent. It all was happening so fast that when Zane reached up to catch it, the ground beneath him suddenly gave way. The vial struck him in the chest, breaking and unleashing the powerful powder. Zane's eyes fluttered shut and he landed on the moving ground next to Cole, unconscious.

 ** _"NO!"_** screamed Nya in horror, sliding to the right as the ground began shifting dangerously. The whole mountainside began to slide, and Nya lost her balance and with a cry began to roll. The rocks and dust were everywhere, and everything was moving so fast. _Everything is falling apart,_ she thought, eyes wide with terror. _The plan…it's failing!_

" ** _Everyone, hang on!"_** came Kai's voice over the loudspeaker of the Bounty. There was a whining sound of machinery as the Bounty zoomed to let down the anchor with Dessie on it. Nya caught a tree just in time to see Zane and Cole safely lifted up into the Bounty, Zane unconsciously draped over one side, and Cole bleeding profusely from his shoulder. Nya's gaze followed them as they disappeared into the Bounty.

"Jay!" she suddenly gasped, his face flashing through her mind like a clap of lightening. "Jay, where are you?!"

There was a sudden silence throughout the mountain as the the landslide stopped, and the dust began to settle. Nya heard herself gasping from adrenalin and from the fright of the landslide. Her gasps sounded so distant and strange as she tried to see through the dust. All she could think about was her love, lost out there. Perhaps buried -

She saw him.

Legs and torso buried under a pile of rubble, draped over a secure ledge on the face of the mountain, Jay lay, completely still. His form looked so fragile and abandoned on the mountainside, in the chilly silence of the mountain.

"Jay…" she gasped, pulling herself to him, everything else forgotten. He lay on his stomach, face turned away from her. The ground beneath her gave way and she slid closer to him, nearly starting the landslide again. His back gently rose and fell, and his arm hung limply over the edge of the ledge of the mountain slope. Holding her breath, Nya edged closer still. Only a few more feet…

A soft breeze blew his red hair gently, and she could see the bruising on his neck from where the helmet dug into his skin. She could hear his soft moaning, and even though it had only been two days, the toll that everything had taken on his body had stolen much from him. His frail and bony hand suddenly seemed so sad to her, and she knew that the moment he could he needed to eat. _If we get out of here alive!_ She reminded herself.

A few more inches and she made it. "Jay," said Nya again, a new hope in her heart. "Jay, please…" She carefully crawled over him to the other side to see his face. His eye was closed, lips parted slightly as he breathed deeply, looking exhausted. His brow suddenly furrowed, and he moaned softly, but his eye did not open. _He's still in pain,_ she realized. Her eyes welled up with tears and she gently stroked his pale, thin cheek. "Jay, baby…" She said, wishing he'd open his eyes and have emotion again in his face.

"Nya, we're here!" cried Dessie's voice. The Bounty was lowering itself to make even ground between the ledge and the deck of the Bounty. She was at Nya's side in a moment, Cole close behind. His shoulder was heavily wrapped in bandages and his face was grim with pain, but he flashed Nya a quick smile and winked. "We'll have him out of there in no time," he said gruffly, leaning heavily on the railing of the bounty. Kai waved from the bring window, and Nya suddenly realized that she had never been alone throughout this entire thing. Tears spilled over and she said, "Let's do it."

Dessie and Nya took Jay gently by the arms, and with one mighty blow Cole struck the earth. The dirt on top of Jay blasted off of him, and the girls rushed him onto the deck of the Bounty just as the rest of the slope began to slide again. Cole sank to the floor, breathing in great gulps of air, lightheaded, and Nya and Dessie carefully carried Jay to the new Healing cabin.

()

Kai steered them clear of the east side of the mountain. _We have him,_ he thought contentedly to himself. _We're ok. We are whole again._

The door behind him opened with a soft creak, and he turned to see Dessie shuffle in, closing the door behind her and coming up to him, her bare feet not making a sound on the wood floor. He grinned at her, then felt the smile fall slightly when she did not smile back. Her white bare feet suddenly reminded him of how Cole would get when he needed comfort - the Master of Earth would take off his shoes and socks to feel the sturdy floor beneath him. _Wonder if that's a family trait,_ he thought. _Dessie, do you need comfort?_

"Get us to Ms. Take, Firecracker," she said, interrupting his thoughts. "Me and Zane can't do the surgery ourselves, and with three in the Healing Cabin I feel outnumbered."

"Too tired?" asked Kai, throwing a concerned glance in her direction as he spun the wheel of the ship.

"Zane's going to be out of commission for the next two days," she said, back bent as if the weight of it all was on her shoulders. "And I _haven't_ been sleeping really since this whole thing happened." She sighed and leaned against the wall, eyes half closed. "I just can't push any farther."

"I understand," he said, taking her hand with his right while his left hand steered the ship. With a mischievous look, he gave a tug and pulled her close. She looked up at him in surprise as he pulled her in, brown eyes playful and longing. Her mouth played at a smile as her gaze locked into his, and she gently leaned in.

"Wait," he suddenly said, and punched in the coordinates for Ms. Take's into the computer. _"Two minutes and thirty seconds until arrival,"_ said the computer.

"That's long enough," he said, and with both arms pulled Dessie into a deep kiss. Her eyes fluttered closed and she breathed deeply, basking in his love. She could feel the stubble on his chin, and the gentle pressure of his hand on the back of her neck. She playfully went limp, and Kai stiffened as he caught her weight. "I could die here," she mumbled out of the side of her mouth.

"Nrp," responded Kai out of the corner of his. "You are going to live and thrive."

They continued, breathing deeply, Dessie resting all of her weight against Kai. He cradled her, lips pressed passionately against her own when Dessie suddenly had the thought that two minutes of this was not long enough at all. Pulling out of the kiss and getting back to her own feet, she said, "Why wait until June? Why not move the wedding up to this March?"

His face had the cutest dumb look, and she laughed as he shook his head, still in the magic of the kiss. "Uh…yeah, we might need to," he said, then gave a little chuckle. "Yes, let's do it." She smiled and reached out to embrace him again when a voice came over the loudspeaker - "Dessie? Jay is beginning to move! How far are we from Ms. Take?"

"Gotta go!" she said, and gave him a quick kiss on the nose and ran from the brig.

Kai gave a huge silly smile, whistled loud enough for all to hear, and lowered the anchor at the base of the grumpy lady's property.

()

Breathe in. Breathe out. Heart beat. Heart beat.

Soft music was in the background. It was a lullaby.

A dull ache began to throb in his eye, and he remembered.

He remembered it all.

With a sob, he curled into a ball.

"Jay," said a soft, distressed voice. "Jay, Jay don't cry - you're fine! You're okay!"

A gentle hand laid itself on his shoulder and he received a hug from behind. It was the same large yet small kind of hug that Kai had received, and after her small arms wrapped around him in a sisterly way he knew instantly that it was Dessie behind him.

"There there," she said. "You'll be alright, I promise. Soro is dead, and no one was hurt after. Nya and the others are all fine, and on their feet like normal. Kai is perfectly healthy, don't worry."

He choked on his sobs and tears and used the blanket to wipe his running nose. He was ugly crying, and he knew it, but he knew Dessie of all people didn't mind. She was the safest person to cry around.

"Here's some tissues," she murmured, and passed them to him. He blew his nose, and then tried to sit up.

"Don't," she said quickly. "You need more strength first. Are you hungry?"

"Yes," he said hoarsely, face lighting up at the mention of food.

Dessie handed him a warm bowl of chicken and cream soup with a touch of healing herbs. "You'll perk right up after this," she said, winking at him. He started gulping it down until Dessie threatened to spoon feed him if he didn't eat at a gentler pace.

"How does your eye feel?" She asked presently.

"Fine," he murmured, sipping the food and feeling the ravenous hunger stop gnawing at him. His face already had a rested sort of look, but Dessie knew that he was still far from 'fine'.

"Well, seeing as how you are awake now, I'll go get the others," she said, standing. "They made me promise that the moment you woke I'd get them."

"Wait," he said quickly. "Just wait."

She grinned. She'd hoped he'd open up right away. "Alright Zappy out with it," she said, pulling up a chair. "Spill it - what's on your mind?

"I…I don't know what to say when I see them," he whispered, playing with the blanket in his feeble fingers. He didn't meet her gaze, but when a tear dropped off his nose she gently reached forward and wiped it away.

"I have a feeling they won't even let you speak, Jay," she said softly. "They will hug you, cry with you, and never let you go again. You have no idea how hard we fought to get you back," she added, wiping yet another tear from his face. "You are family, Jay. You were stolen from us, and we finally won you back."

"What about all the things I did," he asked, waving her hand away from his face and letting his tears dry. "What about the times I totally wounded you guys?"

She grinned. "I'll let them tell you."

"Wait - " he said in alarm as she stood and swung the door open, but it was too late. Her clear shout rang through the Bounty, and the entire ninja family burst into the room.

 ** _"JAY!"_**

Nya was hugging him tightly while crying, and no one else could get in. Cole stood by Dessie by the door, gazing with joy at his brother. Kai and Zane were trying to get around Nya but instead squabbled at each other and ended up just exclaiming over how good Jay looked and how glad they were that he was ok.

Jay gazed at all of them and realized what Dessie had meant. They hugged him, tearfully, laughing in relief and their stories spilling out like waterfalls about what happened on their side. There was no shame or condemnation, and with peace settling on him like a fresh snowfall, he melted into Nya's embrace and whispered something in her ear.

She jerked back, staring. "Huh?!" she gasped, brown eyes wide with amazement.

"Will you marry me?" he asked again, and the room froze. Everyone stared.

 ** _"YES!"_** she screamed, and grabbing his ears planted a hard kiss on his mouth.

"Three," said Kai with a smirk, "Count 'em - _three_ weddings this spring."

Cole laughed and said, "If you can wait that long."

()

Spring was indeed the happiest of times for the ninja. They decided to do all the weddings at once, that way they wouldn't tire of weddings in general. They decorated the Bounty with every kind of flower imaginable, and invited only the closest of friends. Lloyd and Misako finally made it, and Howard, Borg, and Jay's parents came as the only audience. Dareth, believe it or not, performed the ceremonies, and the ninja were lawfully wed. Zane and P.I.X.A.L., Nya and Jay, and Kai and Dessie all wore white sparkling clothing, and each kiss was beautiful and binding.

After the weddings were finished, they celebrated and ate together. Jay gazed into the eyes of his bride, and felt that all the horrors of last year were far behind in comparison to the joy and love and comfort he held in his arms now. Nya gazed back, grinning at his dashing eyepatch, and felt that no sadness could even compete with the joy and happiness in her heart that she had.

Kai looked at Jay's laughing face, and smiled as he saw no more traces of the tragic battle that had touched them only a few months ago. Zane and P.I.X.A.L. were even laughing with Borg, and he turned to see Lloyd and Dessie animatedly talking about new innovative ways to teach. His gaze rested on his new bride, and his smile slowly faded. He suddenly wondered if he was really ready to be a husband, or even a father.

 _Father,_ he suddenly thought, and felt the color drain from his face.

"Hey," said a soft voice in a playful note. "Why do you look so funny?"

He turned to see Dessie, who had come towards him during his pondering.

"Are we ready for this?" he asked. "I mean, marriage is hard, and crazy!"

She laughed. "What, are you having second thoughts?"

"I…I guess I'm scared," he whispered in her ear.

"Oh Kai," she sighed, and kissed him. "We're in this together. We are going to be fine, because I'm scared too! This is a new chapter. Even though it's the end of one adventure, there are a million more to come."

She locked eyes with him. "And I'm gonna be there for every minute of it!"

He grinned, the claws of fear on his heart fading away. She suddenly laughed and pointed at Cole, who was dancing on the dance floor with Dareth.

"Come dance with me!" she yelled, and led him by the hand into their next lifetime of adventures.

 ** _The End._**


End file.
